Us
by heffermonkey
Summary: Jack and Daniel have been stuck in their prison paradise for nearly a year. Is Jack giving up hope or being realistic? And if rescue does come, how will it change things between them?


_Answer to prompt - A Stargate mission goes wrong and Jack and Daniel end up trapped on an abandoned planet... pro-Jack/Daniel fic with a happy ending._

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><p>It had always been one of Daniel's fears, getting stuck on an alien planet for longer than a few months. As he lay looking at the stars which had become as familiar to him as the ones on Earth, he sighed, earning him a look from his companion. Jack never liked it when Daniel started sighing heavily, it meant he was thinking. Thinking of home. About Earth.<p>

Jack tried not to think of Earth, the luxuries, the familiarities, the normalcy. It wasn't his first time trapped on another planet but this stay had shifted from what seemed like 'temporary' to 'permanent'. Jack had put his game face on, put his training into gear and settled down for the long haul. But no matter how much he prodded and pushed, he couldn't expect Daniel to happily accept this was life for now. No matter how hard Daniel tried, he was beginning to lose hope that there would ever be a rescue.

Jack had tried to get his interest peaked in other things but there was little to interest Daniel's mind. No ruins, no abandoned dwellings. No temples or former places of worship to the 'gods'. Not a sign of civilisation to be found in the near viccinity. The only life on the planet was the vegetation, the few species of animal and bird and the two of them. A paradise that was both beautiful and their prison.

"Hey, you're doing it again," Jack said, nudging him in the side with his toe. He gave him a grim smile and held out the bowl of broth he'd cooked up for supper.

"What?" Daniel frowned, sitting up and taking the bowl gratefully.

"Thinking," Jack replied, taking some broth for himself. "Kind of thinking that doesn't do you any good."

Daniel didn't reply and started eating his broth, leaning back against the tree log that served as their 'seat'. After a few minutes of companiable silence he paused and looked at Jack.

"Do you remember that movie, 'Castaway'?" he asked suddenly. "You know, the one with Tom Hanks?"

"Yup," Jack nodded, continuing to eat and wishing that they had salt to add a hint of flavour. He missed seasonings.

"He was stuck on that Island for three years or so," Daniel mused.

"He also made a basketball his best friend," Jack replied dryly. "Think I'll start calling you Wilson."

Daniel smiled at that and took another sip of broth, "Think they'll ever find us Jack?"

Jack sighed himself, setting his half eaten broth down beside him. "Not this again Daniel. Not tonight. Can't we talk about something else?"

"I need to know you aren't giving up hope," Daniel snapped in reply, feeling his own temper flaring as Jack looked at him irritably.

"And I need you to start being realistic Daniel," Jack half yelled, pushing himself up from the log. "It's been nearly a year now and nothing. Not one thing, not alien, not human, nothing has walked past the gate since we did. I'm not giving up hope, but we need to start being honest with ourselves. Maybe, maybe this is it. Maybe we're not going to go back."

"Jack," Daniel began to argue back but Jack was already heading away from the camp, into the thick of the forest that surrounded them.

Daniel left him alone for a good hour before he came looking for him. It wasn't hard to find him, Jack had gotten into the habit of going to one particular place when he needed or wanted to be alone. The incline opened out into a clearing that gave a scenic view of the area they occupied. The Stargate to the West, ocean several clicks off to the North. Camp was South and the rest of the landscape was forest, thick green vegetation rolling on for miles and miles beyond the horizon.

"You didn't finish your supper," Daniel said, holding out an 'orange' to him. It looked like an orange and tasted like an orange but they both still found it hard to accept that it was an orange because they were habitants of a planet far far away from Earth.

"Thanks," Jack said, taking the fruit from him as Daniel settled down on the ground beside him.

"I'm sorry," Daniel apologised, "I guess I've been going on about home quite a bit lately."

"You ever think maybe I don't want to go back?" Jack said quietly, rolling the fruit between his palms.

Daniel turned to look at him closely, saw the sincerity in the words and he frowned, leaning against him, an arm around his shoulders.

"Why wouldn't you want to go back?" Daniel asked him concerned. "It's home."

"I know and don't get me wrong I miss it, parts of it," Jack said nodding his head. He looked round to face his partner. "But when we go home, things will change Daniel. It won't be so easy being - us."

"Because it's so easy being 'us' now," Daniel grinned, giving him a squeeze of reassurance.

He understood what Jack was saying. Here they didn't have to hide who they were to one another and it had taken some months before they'd actually given in to the feelings of want and need and love they felt. Once they'd broken down the walls there'd been no stopping the flood of emotions that had overcome them, or the physical attraction that came from that. They had nothing to hide because there wasn't anyone else around them with questioning glances or judgemental attitudes. Daniel always found it amusing that it had taken being stuck on an alien planet for more than a few weeks for them to admit to how they felt for one another.

"You know one day that Stargate is going to come to life and Samantha Carter is going to waltz on through being the genius woman that she is and god she's going to be a sight for sore eyes," Daniel mused, leaning his head against Jack's shoulder.

"I'm going to kiss T," Jack smirked before letting out a soft laugh. "I'm going to plant one on him, wet and sloppy, just to see that eyebrow raise the roof."

"Gees, you getting bored kissing me?" Daniel moaned, but he broke into a grin as he said it.

"God I miss Sam," Jack sighed. "Wonder if she's running the SGC yet?"

"We haven't been stuck here that long," Daniel pointed out to him, still smiling. "And are you trying to make me jealous? Wanting to kiss Teal'c and missing your second in command?"

"You don't miss them?" Jack laughed, turning to him with a sparkle in his eye.

"Every single day," Daniel replied honestly, smile sobering into a sombre expression. "Every day I hope that gate will come to life. Even though this, living here the way we do, the way we've made it work, is sometimes perfect, it isn't enough Jack. For either of us. When we go home and I know, we will go home, it'll be even more perfect because I get my life back, I get my family back but I also get to take you with me. I know things will be harder, but when have you ever backed down from fighting for something you want and believe in? I don't have any worry that when we get back to Earth that 'us' will cease to exist. You can't get rid of me that easy."

Jack smiled, leaning closer so he could press a soft kiss to his lovers mouth in reply. He didn't doubt it would be hard but he had no intention of giving up Daniel when - _if _- they ever made it home.

"Wilson. Wiii-ll-sson."

Daniel stood up and rolled his eyes, turning around to see if he could spy Jack through the trees. It had been four months since he'd mentioned 'Castaway' and since then Jack had taken to calling him Wilson just to wind him up.

"Hey, there you are - what say we take another hike up to the coast?" Jack grinned, finding him in the 'grove' picking oranges.

"Sure, sounds like a plan," Daniel nodded in agreement. The 'coast' was a day and a half walk so they didn't often go to the ocean. But a dry spell had set in and the days were getting longer and brighter. A few days on the beach would be an enjoyable change. "We can gather supplies today and leave first thing tomorrow."

"Great," Jack agreed before nodding towards the large pile of fruit Daniel had gathered. "Is the fruit bowl running empty?"

"Well, if someone could try and not scoff them all in one sitting, I wouldn't have to pick so many at a time," Daniel pointed out.

Jack was about to say something witty but Daniel held up a hand and frowned. Jack cocked his head, hearing it too. They stared at one another for what seemed like a long drawn out minute when in fact it was seconds.

"That's the gate," Daniel said scrambling to his feet.

Jack had already turned, beginning to wend his way through the forest back to the camp. He dropped to his knees by their makeshift 'hut' and pulled away some of the shrubbery to grab the guns. They'd not been of any use for months but he's stored them away as a precaution. A thum of excitement twisted up through his body but he knew he needed to be cautious. It could be a way off the planet, a rescue, but it could easily be a threat also. He heard Daniel come through the trees behind him as he stood, turning and holding a gun out to him.

Daniel took it without question, but Jack could see the hope in his eyes. Jack just hoped it wasn't a forlorn feeling as he led the way quietly in the direction of the gate. By the time they arrived the gate was already active, it had been over a year since they'd seen the familiar shimmer of an open wormhole and Jack ignored the twinge it made in his gut. He'd missed that view, more than he cared to admit. Still, he cleared his head as they hovered on the treeline waiting. So far, it looked like no-one had come through.

He felt Daniel beside him, steadying his breath's, shoulder to shoulder as they both waited. Jack chanced a glance at him, wanted so much to give him what he most wanted, the means to go home. It was written all over his face, the hope that this was rescue. Jack didn't know what he'd do if this came to nothing. Daniel blinked, realising he was staring and tilted his head up to look at him, not hiding his emotions. They'd both stopped hiding things from one another a long time ago.

Jack wanted to wrap an arm around him and hold him, assure him that if this wasn't it then the next time. Because if the gate could open now then it would open again. He wanted to push him up against the tree that sheltered them and kiss him, hard and rough to seal the promise that no matter what, they'd always have each other. That they'd get home and they'd still be together.

He forced himself to look away, back over to the gate, because letting his mind run away with him, into thoughts of kissing Daniel and what that would lead to, caused him to lose focus. He stared, seeing something coming through the event horizon, slow, depressingly slow. It wasn't a person and his heart dipped a little until it hit him what he was seeing. The form kept on at it's meandering pace, revealing itself.

"It's a MALP," Jack hissed, finding he couldn't move from the spot. Like he couldn't believe what he was saying.

"What?" Daniel jumped in response by him, peering round him to see for himself.

"It's a MALP," Jack repeated. "Fucking hell, it's a fucking-."

Daniel cut him off with a kiss, pressing up close, shutting him up with his lips and tongue and then suddenly he was pulling away, grabbing his hand. Jack let himself be dragged, a little heady from the kiss and then his feet were moving and Daniel let go, moving faster as the MALP came to unsteady halt in front of the gate. Daniel fell onto his knees like he was worshiping it, Jack kicking into automatic mode as he fumbled with some of the buttons.

"Daniel?"

The voice crackled from the internal mic attached to the small contact system. Daniel put a hand on the small vehicle and let out a gasp like it was Sam standing in front of him and not millions of miles away.

"Colonel?"

Daniel reached out and pulled Jack down to him onto his knees and Jack could see he was a little overwhelmed. After waiting so long it didn't seem real that rescue had finally come.

"Yeah it's us Sam," Jack said, uncaring as Daniel slumped against him with relief and happiness, holding him. "It's us."

Before resuce efforts could be put in place they had to painstakingly explain what had happened and why they weren't able to dial out, using the MALP to show Sam the destroyed DHD. Sam was heading up the team but it was going to take time to put together what they needed to get the gate working.

"See you in a few hours," Sam said wistfully before the gate shutdown and they were alone once more.

"Did that just happen?" Daniel said as Jack helped him to his feet.

"Sure the hell did Wilson," Jack assured him with a smile, though he understood his partners feelings that what had occurred was a dream.

Daniel took his hand and gave it a squeeze, "We're going home. We're going home Jack."

"Yes, we are," Jack nodded, leaving go of his hand to pull him flush to him.

"Things are going to be okay aren't they?" Daniel said, sliding his arms around his waist. "With us?"

"Yeah," Jack promised, leaning in to kiss him, softly this time.

"You kiss like you mean it but you don't sound so sure," Daniel said gently pulling back to look at him keenly.

Jack looked at him, eyes focused on his, jaw set firmly as he tightened his grip around his lover. "It isn't going to be easy, things are going to be different. But I'm sure about one thing Daniel and that is us. Believe me I'm not giving this up, I can't. If that means a lot of changes for us back on Earth then okay, I don't give a damn. I'm not giving you up."

"Promise?" Daniel said, believing him but wanting to hear it any way.

He smiled as Jack's eyes narrowed, feeling the possessiveness in his hold, the way his fingers bunched into the back of his t-shirt as his stare bore into him.

"Promise," Jack replied, voice low and hoarse before he kissed him again. The start of a kiss that would usually leave him panting and breathless, thrumming with desire and need.

Daniel wondered if they'd make it back to camp before Jack physically sealed that promise. If they'd have time to sate that desire before the rescue team arrived. For the first time since they'd landed in this paradise, he hoped rescue would take just a little longer.

~fin~


End file.
